Ball-and-socket flexible joint.



GEORGE FREDERICK WEST, OFPLISTOW, IIONDN, ENGLAND.

BALL-AND-SOCKET FLEXIBLE JOINT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July e, i9o9.

Application filed February 10, 1908. Serial No. 416,152. ,(llodelfj To all whom 'it may'concern.'

Be it known that I, GEORGE FREDERICK WEST, a subject of the King of Great Britain and Ireland, and residing at 118 Broadway, Plaistow, London, E., En land, have invented certain new and usefu Improvements in.

and Connected with Ball-and-Socket Flexible Joints, of which the following is a specilication.

This invention relates to ball andsocket flexible joints of the t e whereinboth the spherical end of one sha t or member and the socket end of the other shaft or member arel provided with grooves or recesses adapted to receive balls or key pieces.

It has hitherto been proposed to provide the socket end with two recesses wherein f is a longitudina section, and Fig. 2 a trans.

vverse section. Fig. 3 illustrates in plan and in two side views one of the cylindrical blocks or rockers employed. Fig. 4 .illustrates a'modiiication.

In carrying out the invention according to one mode, a shaft, o., is formed with a spherical end, b, which is provided with a number of meridional rooves, c, in which balls, d, en age, the bal s engaging in grooves, e, in oscil atory carriers, f. The latter are mounted in corresponding recesses in the socket end, g, of the other shaft or member, h, the socket end being preferably hollowed out to corres ond to the spherical end, b, 'of the shaft, a.

he carriers, f, may, in j ointsof large size, be fitted with liners or with ball bearings, for instance as shown in Fig. 4, in which case the rear of the carriers and the vremovable screw plllllgs, lm, are arranged with races for the The carriers, f, are preferably provided with notches, c, in which a ring, i, enters which limits the angle of oscillation of the 4shaft of a motor-propelle carriers in order to prevent the carriers movmg into positions wherein the grooves e would be at right angles to the meridian grooves c, in which case freedom of the balls to roll in the grooves e would be avoided.

In use either shaft may be the driving shaft, and the shafts may be arranged at any angle to one another within the'limits indlcated by the dotted lines in Fig. 1, effecting a drive in any position and in any plane within this range. When the shafts, a and h, are moved relatively to each other, the cylindrical carriers, f, move more or less within their recesses, so as to allow f or the angular movement. An outer guard, n, is fitted to keep out dust.

Instead of employing balls, small sliding pieces may be used. The invention -is applicable for general purposes. It may be used u on the propeller vehicle, or with machineor hand tools, such, for instance, as a brace adapted ,to bore holes in any position that may not be convenient with a usual form of tool, and it is to be understood that any number of joints of the nature described may be combined in a series Iof short shafts, so as to'form a continuous length of 'flexible shafting when desired.

In the operation of the device, supposing that the member b is turned on the alls at theright and` left of Fig. v2, the balls immediately above and below the balls at the right and left of said figure will movel in the grooves of the member b. Of course, if the carriers f had no rotary motion, and were fixed in the member g, then the balls could notmove in the inclined grooves of theV member b, but the carriers are adapted to have rotary move-- ment in sockets, and theyare grooved so that these grooves may conform, 1n positlon, with the angular grooves in the member b,-v and thus the balls referred to are free to move p in the angular grooves. t

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is z- 1. A universal joint comprising a cup shaped member, a spherical member located within the cup shaped member, said spherical member having meridional grooves, andthe cup-shaped member having apertures, oscillatory carriers freely mounted in the apertures in the cu -shaped member and havin grooves, and alle partly situated in sai` groovesand in the meridional grooves in the s herical member and means for limiting the t egree of oscillation of the carriers.

2. A universal joint com rising a cupshaped member, a grooved sp erical member located within the cup-shaped member and having apertures, os'clllatory carriers freely mounted in the said apertures' of the cupshaped member and having transverse grooves, balls located partly in said grooves and partly in the meridional grooves in the spherical member, said carriers having notches and a ring entering the notches of the carriers for limiting the angular oscillation of the same, substantially as described.

3. A universal joint comprising a spherical member` having grooves, a cup-shaped mem ber having apertures, carriers reel mounted inthe apertures of the cup-sha e member, means for limiting the degree o oscillation of said carriers, said carriers having transverse grooves, balls situated partly in said grooves of the carriers and partly in said meridional grooves, screwed plugs at the rear of said carriers and ball bearings between the plugs and CSJIIIQIS.

In testimony whereof, I aiiiX my signature in presence of two witnesses.

GEORGE FREDERICK WEST. Witnesses:

ALFRED NUTTING, BERTRAM H. MATTHEWS. 

